


New Day

by RoseCathy



Category: Red Dwarf
Genre: Alternate Canon, F/M, Love Triangles, M/M, Series 07
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-12
Updated: 2014-07-12
Packaged: 2018-02-08 12:52:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,234
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1941855
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RoseCathy/pseuds/RoseCathy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A love triangle in an alternate Series VII timeline.</p>
            </blockquote>





	New Day

The rest of the crew were thoroughly sick of the rows. Even in the anomalously expanded Starbug, they couldn’t help overhearing the relevant bits. Phrases like _stuck in the past_ and _unwilling to work on us_ (or was it _for us?_ ) rang through the corridors during waking hours and in their ears when they were in bed.

If Rimmer felt the odd burst of triumph amid the suffocating angst, there was no need for the others to know.

He rolled over to face the other bunk, where Lister had just flung himself and his things after the longest row to date.

“This is the last time,” a determined voice told no one in particular. “Definitely the last time.”

Rimmer accepted this statement without question. Contrary to what he believed, it wasn’t because he had any great faith in Lister’s ability to end it with Kochanski, but because he needed it to be true. It would mean no more drama, no more saccharine reconciliations.

It would mean more for him.

“It would have been too weird, in the end,” Lister continued. “What with her technically being my mum.”

“Lister, it already is - _was_ weird. You’ve got to be the only man in the history of the universe to have said, ‘Well, I’m pretty much out of options. Ooh, I know, I’ll try it on with my mum!’”

Lister shrugged; he didn’t seem too offended. “Yeah, well…it’s for the best. We both need a fresh start, man.”

And yet, just like all the other times, Rimmer was awakened some time later by the loud sniffling of someone trying not to weep outright. He kicked off his duvet and sat up into an optimal position for shouting across the room. “Lister - ”

“I know, I know,” Lister interrupted, wiping across his face with a pillow. “It’s just - just - I love her so much, you know? She’s the love of my life. We were s-so _good_ together. And I think we still could be, if…”

 _What is the smegging point_ , Rimmer seethed to himself, gritting his teeth. “Not two hours ago, you said it was for the best.”

“Yeah, but - ”

“That you needed a fresh start.”

“Yes, but - ”

Rimmer’s self-control was rolling merrily away from him. “How many more times, Lister?” he barrelled on. “How many more of your stupid fight-make up-fight cycles do the rest of us have to put up with because you don’t know your own mind?”

“‘The rest of us’? Is this where you pretend to care about the crew again?” Lister retorted.

That hurt. Rimmer bit his tongue and tried to count to ten, but he couldn’t remember beyond three. “You said this was the _last time_.”

Silence reigned for a minute or two. “Yeah,” Lister eventually admitted, defeated. “I did say that.”

“And?”

“It _is_ the last time. As it should be - ” — Rimmer snorted derisively — “ - no, I mean that! But I can’t help it if I feel so…so…”

“So _alone_ , devastated, shattered! Yes, I know! Exactly like the previous hundred times, and probably the next hundred times as well!” Rimmer was completely fed up with all this — Starbug, Lister, Kochanski, everything. He was fed up with empty promises.

What happened next was beyond all comprehension. Lister trudged over and sat down next to him, close enough that they were almost holding each other up. After the smallest of hesitations, he leaned his head on Rimmer’s shoulder.

“It’s…hard.” Lister’s trembling voice sent chills through Rimmer’s arm. “Not being with the person who’s meant for you.”

When Rimmer turned to look incredulously into Lister’s face — was his turmoil so obvious? — he could see every tear-streak, every single wet eyelash. A thumb (whose thumb?) carefully wiped away a new tear, then another, then came to rest just above the curl of a new smile. _This is how it feels to love someone_ was the first thought that formed in his mind; he wondered at the absurdity of it. 

Then Lister tilted his head to bring their lips together, and Rimmer gave up trying to make any sense of the universe.

The first kiss was gentle and brief, all too brief; he decided that he ought to remember and count each one. _Two, three, four…seven -_ Lister’s arms went around his neck - _nine…_ that was a nice long one, _twelve -_ he was being lowered onto the mattress. He lost count once he was laid on his back, Lister snuggled into his side.

In an uncharacteristic fit of bravery, he pressed soft kisses all over that serene, still-damp face. _I’ll make you happy,_ he found himself vowing silently and spontaneously. The time for analysis was past; this was it, this was what he’d been waiting for without even knowing it. _We’ll be just as good together - no, better._

Lister smiled and nuzzled his shoulder as if he could hear the promises. _No more fights. Well, no more than we usually have. You’ll see. We’ll see together._

On that hopeful note, he settled his head just above Lister’s and fell asleep.

  


Rimmer didn’t expect the first thing he saw to be Lister sitting at the foot of the bunk, arms folded, staring at the floor.

“Lister?”

Lister granted him one quick glance before looking away again. “Rimmer, I - ” He took a deep breath before continuing. “I’m sorry. Last night was…it was a mistake.”

Deep down, Rimmer immediately understood that this was not good, but his brain, still fuzzy from sleep and happiness, refused to accept it. “What do you mean?” he asked, confused. “It was - I thought it was - ” What were you supposed to say in this situation? What word did you use to describe something that you didn’t ever want to lose?

“You know what it’s like. Being on the rebound, feeling like - look, it was a mistake.”

 _Stop calling it a mistake!_ Try as he might, Rimmer couldn’t get the words out; his voice simply would not cooperate. All he could do was gape stupidly at Lister.

“…used you to feel better,” he was saying, guilt evident in every syllable. “I’m not proud of it. I’m so sorry.” With that, he stood up and fled the room.

  


Rimmer believed, based on prior experience, that the cycle would repeat itself yet again. A tiff would mushroom into a very audible battle. Lister would come quietly back to the spare bunk, perhaps claiming that _this_ was actually the last time.

Except he didn’t. When Lister had returned to Kochanski that day, they’d reached some sort of new understanding. They started treating each other better, taking great care to show affection and appreciation, and generally living out the deathless love story across realities or whatever it was supposed to be.

A _fresh start,_ as Lister had put it, was what they’d needed.

Cat and Kryten were pleased. They, too, had got tired of the turbulence in Starbug’s atmosphere; now they could go about their business in peace, pausing only occasionally to pretend to vomit at the loved-up couple. Meanwhile, the void in Rimmer’s chest grew every day, slowly but steadily obliterating any lingering hope. By the time Ace swooped back into their dimension to find him, he’d stopped feeling angry or sad or jealous. He didn’t feel much at all except the strong need for self-preservation that he’d always had.

So, naturally, he blurted out an eager “Yes” before Ace had even finished his recruitment speech.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Final Night](https://archiveofourown.org/works/5263445) by [mrflibbleisverycross](https://archiveofourown.org/users/mrflibbleisverycross/pseuds/mrflibbleisverycross)




End file.
